Segment 1: Kansas City, Missouri Municipal Court is working to improve the judicial experience.
Kansas City's Municipal Court is participating in a pilot project to improve trust between courts and the communities they serve. Through dialogue sessions, it hopes to tackle problems like its high failure-to-appear rate. Because citizens often face confusion and intimidation within the judicial system, personnel "want to demystify the courts," Benita Jones, the court's public information officer said.
- Benita Jones, public information officer, Kansas City Municipal Court
- Megan Pfannesstiel, municipal court administrator, Kansas City Municipal Court
Segment 2, beginning at 23:09: Public policy expert calls for reform of practices that "have continued to push people into poverty."
Cato Intstitute's Michael Tanner said the nation does well providing basic material needs to residents, but "we don't do a very good job at enabling people to flourish." Tanner targeted areas where reform is needed including a criminal justice system that doesn't incarcerate black men at the rate it does and the educational models that should offer more options to parents.
- Michael Tanner, senior fellow, Cato Institute
Michael Tanner will speak on "The Inclusive Economy: How to Bring Wealth to America's Poor" on November 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Kansas City Public Library Plaza Branch, 4801 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64112. RSVP at kclibrary.org.
